Extract

A mountainous region of eastern Anatolia, north of Syria and Mesopotamia, bounded on the east by *Media Atropatene (mod. Azerbaijan) and on the west by *Cappadocia and *Commagene. The region, known after *Pompey's settlement of Asia Minor as Greater Armenia, was situated east of the upper *Euphrates, and included in the north extensive areas round Lake Van, along the valley of the river *Araxes (which empties into the Caspian Sea), and north to Lake Sevan (south of the river Kur) and the southern borders of the small kingdom of *Iberia (2) in the lower Caucausus. The great altitude of Armenia insulated the country from its neighbours, especially from the Mesopotamian lowlands. The main point of entry from Mesopotamia was in the SW corner (Sophene: southern Armenia) and from the crossing of the Euphrates at Tomisa in SE Cappadocia. The chief importance of this area for the *Achaemenid kings (cf.